Man arrested after MassBay incident

The ex-boyfriend of a MassBay College student was arrested Monday afternoon after he allegedly followed her to the school and slapped her.

Samantha Fields

The ex-boyfriend of a MassBay College student was arrested Monday afternoon after he allegedly followed her to the school and slapped her.

Local news outlets rushed to the Oakland Street campus after initial reports came in that there had been two stabbings at the college. Those reports later turned out to be false.

According to Michael Pierce, director of administrative services at the college, one of the woman’s friends called 911 from a cell phone after her ex-boyfriend slapped her, and an altercation broke out in the school’s cafeteria around 12:15 p.m. Because the call was not made from a campus phone, Pierce said, school officials were unaware of the incident until Wellesley Police and the media arrived.

Police apprehended the suspect on Oakland Street near the campus. He had a cut that police said appeared to have been self-inflicted. “He cut himself to make it look like he was the victim,” said Deputy Chief of Police Bill Brooks. The man was arrested and charged with assault, and falsely reporting a crime.

For their part, MassBay officials are “still trying to figure out [exactly] what happened,” said Pierce, who added that the college will be reviewing the incident, and interviewing students and faculty to figure out who saw what in the cafeteria. “We will of course look at all of our safety procedures.”

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